Owning a hamster can be a very rewarding experience and lead to countless hours of enjoyment; but with it, comes responsibility in the way of proper maintenance and husbandry. In this comprehensive guide, you can read about topics ranging from picking the right pet, finding an appropriately sized cage, selecting safe bedding materials, choosing healthy food options, treating illness and injuries, breeding and carrying for babies and much much more.
Learn how to take care of a hamster by following the information and advice bellow:
Picking the Right Hamster
There are several breeds and number of colors and coats to choose from these days. But beyond the pure esthetics or the appearance of the hamster, one needs to select a hamster that they can can manage to take care of. Different breeds have different dispositions and different tendencies. If you are a beginner, choose a Syrian or Golden hamster breed; they are probably the most friendly and curious of all the breeds. Some Dwarf species are harder to keep due to their small stature and their skittish and shy behavior. Find out if you are allowed to own small pets in your state.
Selecting a Cage Habitat
There are several options for selecting a cage. Each options has its pros and its cons. The best habitats however, are large and spacious. Whether they are made of plastic, metal wire or glass, they key here is to buy the largest home for your pet that you can afford at the time. Get one that you can add on to over time. This will make your hamsters happy and not stir crazy or bored.
Choosing Your Bedding
Choose your hamster bedding carefully. Some bedding preforms better than others. You can make your own bedding but its better to buy packaged hamster bedding form a local pet store. These usually stand up well to wear and tear and absorb waste rather well. Avoid using cedar chips because of the the combination of urine and cedar wood can be toxic. Pine chips can be toxic too if the wood has been treated with chemicals.
Feeding Your Hamsters Food and Water
Hamsters like a diet that consists of both plants and protein. Like most small rodents, they do mostly eat plants, fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts but they also occasional like to eat a bug or two. This is the diet they would have in their natural habitat. There are several types of diets that should be considered based on the age and health of your hamster. some older ones can’t handle all the protein and thus should be fed a lower ratio of protein to greens. Additionally, if a hamster has too much greens, fruits or vegetables, it can lead to diarrhea. This would then require a reduction in the amount of these types of foods in their diet.
Accessories for Exercise and Fun
Hamsters need a lot of space to be happy and several options for exercise. You could never give your pet a cage as large as its natural habitat, so it’s important to provide good care in the way of an exercise wheel, ball, ladders, tubes and tunnels. With a wide range of accessories to keep it occupied and fit, the hamster won’t become stressed from a lack of exercise or stimulation. Other accessories like a sleeping house will also reduce stress as it give them a safe place to hide. Read more about accessories…
Observing Behaviors
A happy and healthy hamster will poke it’s head up and look curiously at you when you open its cage. If it seems to have no interest or cowers in fear, this could be a sign of an illness or a lack of trust. If it’s sleeping, it’s best to slowly wake it up if you want to handle it. Startling a hamster while it slumbers can be very stressful on it. This could lead to getting bitten. However, the most important behavior to be concerned about is any unhealthy repetitive habit. if it keeps running in circles of constantly gnaws on the cage bars, this could be a sign that it doesn’t ave enough stimulation or space to roam around in.
Treating illnesses
Hamster get sick just like any other living creature. Many of the illnesses are similar to that of what humans can contract. These include things as common as the cold or flu. Treating a sick hamster can require some quality care and potentially a trip to the vet. if you notice a change in behavior of your hamster or notice a change in its physical appearance, there’s a good change your little guy has an illness or injury. Find out more about what might be troubling your hamster.
Author: Tim Winter
Hi im 12 and im getting a hamster tommorrow. My best friend had a hamster named Racalette (it died last fall) and she was super calm and never tried to run from us. I was wondering if the fact that she was a class pet (her aunt was a teacher, Rascalette was a B-day gift) had anything to do with it. Or are syrian hamsters natually calm?
Syrian hamsters are the most mild mannered breed of hamster. Bond with it while it is young and you should have no problem holding it when it gets older. see our post on how to handle a hamster.
Hey do you know if all hamster are able to climb up little stairs like the ones for there cage?
for the most part, they all will be able to climb. the problem with climbing occurs when you have a dwarf breed and have tubes that are meant for the larger syrian breeds. ladders, ramps, and stairs are usually ok to all breeds. be careful with ladders though since a hamster can get its foot caught in it. ramps are probably the best. you can cover a ladder to make it into a ramp.
I will get a short haired hamster.
Are there any things i need to know before getting one?
Also, what type of water are you supposed to let them drink?
Sink water?
The more tame ones are the larger Syrian breeds. These are easiest to handle and are pretty mild mannered. Syrians do best when the live alone so if you get one, only put one into a cage. Tap water is fine but you could use filtered water or bottled water if you want to spoil them. You can let tap water sit out for a day and the chlorine will evaporate. There are dechlorinator drops the put use in their fish tanks but find out first if it’s healthy for a hamster.
So I am getting a hamster
<3
And I need a cat proof cage. I need a wheel,food dish,water bottle, ant toys. So I am kinda need help. But I know that you need water bottle ,wheel and a food dish.
I can’t wait I might be getting next week. Whoooooooooo!:-)
Try to put the cage in a spot you cat can’t get to it. that’s not easy since cats can get everywhere! try a cage that has more solid walls, one that is deep and wide so your hamster can escape into a safe hiding place when your cat is around…but really just try to keep you cat out of the room where your hamster is at. When ever you are not in the room with your hamster, close the door to keep it safe.
Dude, I like your hamter care advice and all, but i got one question.
Are hamsters easy to take care of?
Thanks.
For the most part they are. You just need to keep their food and water full, change the bedding where they use the bathroom every few days, clean the cage only about once a month; unless it’s noticeably dirty. Provide it with a good size cage with some entertainment and exercise equipment. They are similar to fish on the scale of care level.
This is Shreya Rai.I am only 10 years old and i have a new hamster(baby hamster).I named it snowy.I would say that Snowy is quite naughty because my friend came to my house to look at the hamster.She was tapping softy on the head when it bit her.Anyway,it will hide its food because it thinks i will take its food.But whe it is hungry,it will show its sad face.it put both of its hand on the stomach,standing up.i will then give it food.it will eat.when it is sleeping,i would open the cage to not to hide the food but it will wake up(can u give me many other instructions including this)ThankYou!
These are all kind of natural behaviors for hamsters. First your hamster probably doesn’t have the same bond with your friend that is has with you. so I’m sure it got scared when your friend touched it on the head. try to avoid tapping the head if that is the case too; petting the body is probably less stressful. In response to the hiding of the food, that’s what hamsters do and there is little you need to be concerned with about that.
Hi, thanks for all your previous replies. I’ve already gotten myself a hamster, and it’s a really adorable pudding. It’s currently only it’s 2nd day here, but I’m a little worried about some stuffs.
Firstly, I observed that it doesn’t explore much and stays in it’s house/ corner under the wheel a lot, which is probably because it is nervous in a new environment, but it doesn’t really go to the water bottle for water all day long (i have to hold the water bottle directly in front of it’s mouth for it to drink) and it’s never explored the bath sand (which is contained in a bath tub looking porcelain model). Is it just the first -day trauma symptoms which it would get over in a few days? Don’t think not drinking water and not using the bathing sand is good for it, eh…
Also, is there any way which I can change my hamster’s diet? I read that sunflower seeds (only) are not good for it’s health, but my hamster’s a really picky one that honestly just wants to eat sunflower seeds. I’ve opened treat-packs like dried diced apple, cabbage, beetroot, and even green tea ‘cookies’ that i got from the pet store and it wasn’t interested in any of those.
Am really concerned about these two problems now, looking forward to your reply! thanks!
Yeah these are all normal for a hamster in a new home. Give it time to adjust and get comfy; eventually it will start to act normal. It will slowly start to use the toys and sand bath. Each hamster is different though and they might not use the toys as they are intended. In terms of the diet, yeah they can sure be picky. If only eats sunflower seeds, try taking them out and force it to choose another type of food. A hamster will eventually eat; it won’t starve itself.
Hi, this is Cassandra. I’ve heard about your website from my cousin, and I’d like to know if Blue/Yellow Puddings are recommended for an average pet owner. I’ve had a Winter White hamster before, but I’m concerned as to whether Puddings are tame, whether they are easy to handle and such.
Looking forward to your reply, thanks in advance!
“Puddings” are not a true breed of hamster but a cross breed between a Winter White and a Campbell’s or something like that. They should not be bred since their offspring have a higher chance for having genetic defects. If you don’t plan on breeding them, you could get one and treat it just like you would a Winter White and expect it to behave similar to them as well.
hey i got a new winter white hamster and i was wondering if there was a special type of food i need to buy.i have a really big cage to i was wondering if i should get a smaller one.
A large cage is a good thing. You could get smaller accessories thought that are meant for dwarf species. See the post on hamster food for help on feeding.
Hi, I’d like to get a hamster soon, but my mum’s concerned with the hygiene related to keeping a hamster. The only possible calm space which we can place the hamster in is my room, which is currently really clean and with no traces of ants or other insects. Would placing a hamster cage in my room attract bugs or cause my room to smell or something?
No it shouldn’t attract bugs, especially if you clean the cage when it needs to be cleaned, but, the hamster might keep you up at night since it will likely be up running around during the night time hours. You can try it, but if you get a noisy wheel or other toys, you might be up all night hearing it chewing on things and digging around in its bedding.
Thanks for your reply!
Anyway, I’ve been reading up regarding hamsters and I’ve noticed that some people are just able to leave their dwarf hamsters on their table/ bed etc to scamper about (with the pet owner watching the hamster)… is it really possible to do so? My impression is that dwarf hamsters are really active and agile, was trying to hold one in my hand before and it moves so quickly that i was afraid it’d fall off my hands.
I would be careful with trying that. if you do, make sure you close all the doors, and cover any areas that your little guy might run and hide under or behind. You also want to be careful of other pets and keep track of where your hamster is at at all times so you don’t accidentally step on it or sit on it.
Sorry for the spammage of questions, I guess I’m a pretty curious future-hamster owner :p Last question! What dwarf breeds would you recommend that are friendly, don’t bite when nervous and are easy to handle (like hold in hands and stuffs)? And lifetime too..
I’m not really a fan of Syrians since I like dwarf hamsters better, but I’m worried that they’d be too small and quick to handle.. A few (unrelated) pet owners commented that their Roborovskis died for no reason after 1 year.. is it true that the lifespan of this breed is relatively shorter?
A good dwarf breed is a Campbell’s dwarf. They are slightly larger than the other breeds, more curious and a bit less timid than the Robos and Chinese dwarfs. Dwarf Hamsters live for about 1.5 – 3.5 years. The Campbell’s dwarf should live 1.5 to 2 years while the robo should live to about 3 years. With great care and some luck though, they can live slightly longer. How long it lives depends on how good of care you provide but just as equally, the hamster’s genetics. Some have better genes than others. So even if you do everything right, a lot of times, it’s not your fault if they die.